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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: date · plane · band · race · cell · sharp · staff · bat

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. date — the fruit
  4. band — a music group
  5. plane — a tool
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. race — the arms race
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. cell — in biology
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. staff — employees
  14. bat — the animal
  15. race — humankind
  16. sharp — clever
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. band — a ring
  20. staff — employees
  21. race — a contest
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. staff — a stick
  24. cell — a phone

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com